Thor #7: A Mythological Tale Of Love And Lessons Never Learned
by Josh Davison
[*Mild Spoilers Ahead!]
We jump back centuries to the time of the vikings and a youthful Thor struggling under the dominion of his father, Odin. Thor is spending most of his time on Midgard, but Odin wants his son on Asgard learning how to rule the Nine Realms. Loki has a plan to resolve this quarrel, and Odin is desperate enough to see how it plays out. The Trickster God brings Thor into the path of Erika the Red, a viking leader currently in conflict with another clan. Thor immediately falls in love, and Loki’s scheme goes smoothly.
Thor #7 balances out the “All-Father Thor” story we just experienced with a leap back into the Thunder God’s past. It also continues writer Jason Aaron’s trend of writing tales about Thor’s past, present, and future that go back as far as the God-Butcher saga.
It’s an entertaining tale, too. It plays out very much like a story of myth, with Thor “needing to learn a lesson” from Odin while Loki still schemes in the process. Even smaller details, like Loki and Odin watching Thor from a magical portal, and a distinctly vague amount of time passing, is reminiscent of an old tale of myth.
That said, there are still the more human and grounded narrative elements to it. You can’t help but feel for both Thor and Erika as the story progresses, as you know deep down this isn’t going to end the way either of them want.
The artwork of Tony Moore is a real stand-out quality of this issue as well. I’ve noted some dissatisfaction with the artwork in this run of Thor, though I do generally like the work of Christian Ward, who rendered the most recent story arc. That said, Moore’s artwork is great and well-suited to Thor. He is good at drawing the Thunder God’s somewhat smug smile as well as the deviousness of Loki. There is an earthy texture to the detailing throughout that really fits the comic well, too. John Rauch accompanies it well with a somewhat grim and dirty color palette to match the era and tone.
Thor #7 is among the stronger issues of this particular run of the title. The story is simple, straightforward, but engaging. The artwork of Tony Moore and John Rauch looks great and suits Thor well. This comic easily earns a recommendation. Check it out.
Thor #7 comes to us from writer Jason Aaron, artist Tony Moore, color artist John Rauch, letterer VC’s Joe Sabino, cover artist Mike del Mundo, and variant cover artist Greg Land with Frank D’Armata.
